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Animal Defenders of Westchester
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Yonkers, NY 10704

Westchester4Geese

Scarsdale Happy With Village Decision Not To Kill Geese

By Zak FaillaNews,
Scarsdale.DailyVoice.com, February 21, 2013

The geese that live near
the pond outside the Scarsdale Public Library will not be exterminated by
the village, but other options for controlling the population are under
study.

Some Scarsdale residents are pleased with the village’s
decision to continue exploring options to get rid of the Canada geese that
populate the pond near the Scarsdale Public Library.

Last week,
Village Manager Alfred Gatta announced that officials would look at other
options than signing a contract with the U.S. Department of Agriculture to
kill the geese.

Village officials want to rid the pond of the geese,
arguing that their droppings befoul the location and make it inaccessible to
residents.

”It’s shocking to me that they would have even considered
such a drastic measure in the first place,” Sargent road resident Mohammad
Jamal said. “The geese are as much a part of the community as the rest of
us. You can’t just get rid of things that are inconvenient to you.”

Gatta said the village might attempt to modify the habitat by allowing grass
to grow longer, which would make it a less appealing environment for the
geese to mate. The village may also use an OvoControl-G birth control feed
for geese. Officials hope to find a solution by the late spring.

“It’s good they came to their senses before it was too late,” Alli Jones
said outside of the Scarsdale train station. “There are so many other
options for consideration.”

Recently retired Scarsdale teacher
Stephen Sepe said the geese and pond are an indispensable learning tool for
the high school.“The geese are a part of the life of the school,” he
said. “They would nest there and provide the students direct contact to
nature.

I would often talk about the geese in my classes, and really
felt they were an important vehicle for teaching respect for life. The idea
of doing harm to the animals is appalling, and I don’t understand that the
powers that be would even contemplate such a measure.”